Advice on laying up engines...

[Lewis]

As the number of engines seems to somehow continue rising in our household, I was wondering if any of you could impart any tips or good practices for keeping them laid up?

At the moment the general practice has been to drop the plugs, slosh a little oil down the bores, mask up all intakes, inlets and ports (so stuff can't get in) and turn the things over every week or so by hand

Is there anything else you could recommend? I've seen specific lay-up oils, these worth anything? I just don't want to come back to any of them and find the piston rings have stuck, or so on

Ta!

[DoloWIGHTY]

I've always laid mine up wet.

Emptied the oil out, overfilled with cheap new engine oil and filled with water/antifreeze mix . Oil down the bores and turn it over on the pulley (when I remember too) once a month. Spark plugs in their holes and take out when turning over.

[rich]

i've decided to keep mine taxed and tested this year .

last year i mhad a few problems with siezed calipers from lack of movement, i am going to give her a run out every time the weathers nice and dry.

it rained more in the summer this year than in the winter!!!!!!

[Jon Tilson]

Buy TR7 engine off a well known "massive twat", thats been sitting in his garden for donkeys...
Get shipped down in open trailer on rainy day in winter for 100 plus miles.
Leave outside for further six months under plastic bin liner that soon blows off.
come to fit eventually....hmm bores full of water...must have got in through maniflold servo takeoff. remove mouse nest from carb inlet.
Turns....well half way anyway. Then sticks. Remove head? Try but...studs stuck. Leave it then. Retorque probably in worng order as cant find manual. Plugs out...oil down bores. Turn crank...graunch graunch. Bit further each time...yeehaa good turns all the way now but has some stuff bits. Some evidence of compression.
Stick in car anyway.
connect up...do compression test. Well there is some but then notice my guage has a split hose...sounds like its got at least 3 good bores...
Eventually fires up with plugs in and clouds of smoke. Replace a collapsing persihed breather hose. Begins to sound half sensible....
Must have changed oil and filter but cant remeber when.

Car is still in use 3 years, 15k at least (spedo u/s) and 1 learner driver later...Sad clutch plate and sounds a tad tired at bottom end...but still goes quite reasonably. Gary is painting it since nobody here wanted it.

Who says you even need to bother doing anything?


Jonners